Propelling mechanism for boats.



PATENTED JAN. 13. 1903.

1). 0. PUTNAM. PROPELLING MECHANISM FOR BOATS. APPL'IGATION FILED FEB, 19, 1901.

no MODEL ATTORNEYS.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DOURA G. PUTNAM, OF LYONS, NEW YORK.

PROPELLING MECHANISM FOR BOATS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 718,156, dated January 13, 1903.

Application filed February 19, 1901. Serial No. 47,990. (No model.)

Lyons, in the county of Wayne, in the State.

of New York, have'invented new and useful Improvements in Propelling Mechanism for Boats, of which the following, taken in con-- nection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and exact description. 7

My invention relates to improvements in propelling mechanismfor boats, the objects being to provide a simple and compact .propelling device by which the operator is permitted to face in the direction of movement of the boat and to vary the reach and depth of stroke of the car and in which the cars may be readily folded and rocked inwardly into the boat when not in use.

The further object of my invention is to provide means whereby the oar and its rocking frame may be readily removed or placed in position when desired. To this end the invention consists in the combination,construction, and arrangement of the parts of a propelling mechanism for boats, as hereinafter fully described, and pointed outin the claims.

Referring to the drawings, Figure l is a top plan of one side of a boat and my invention applied thereto. Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the device seen in Fig. 1, the free ends of the oar-sections beingbroken away. Fig. 3 is an end view of the parts seen in Fig. 2, the oar-sections beingfolded and rocked inwardly into the boat. Fig. 4 is a detail end view of the base-plate and rocking support, showing the manner of assembling the same, the trunnion being shown in section. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of one of the outer oar-sections.

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

This invention consists, essentially, of a base-plate A, a rocking support B, intermeshing gears G, and oar-sections c and a. The base-plate A may be of any desired form or material, is preferably secured to one of the side rails 01 of a boat D, a portion'of which is seen in the drawings, and usually consists of a lengthwise bar a, adapted to rest upon the upper face of the rails d, and is provided with depending ears a, engaged with the outer face of said rail. The upper bars a and cars a are provided with suitable apertures for receiving screws or other suitable fastening means 1, which serve to firmly hold said baseplate in position. This base-plate is provided with upwardly-projecting ears orlugs 2, each of which is formed with a slot 3,- extending downwardly from its upper end face, the lower ends of said slot being enlarged at 4 and forming a suitable bearing for the rocking support B, presently described. The support B may also be of any desired form or material and preferably consists of an open frame having upper and lower walls b and end walls I), the upper and lower walls being provided with bearings 5, alined with each other vertically andarranged one in advance of the other lengthwise of the boat D or rail (1. The end walls I) are provided with trunnions 6, projectingfrom their lower ends, are movable into and out of the slots 3, and are provided with annular'end shoulders 7, adapted to engage the outer faces of the upwardly-proj ectin g ears 2. These trunnions 6- are formed of substantially the same diameters as the enlarged lowerends of the slots 3 and are usually provided without-outs 0r flattened portions Sin their peripheral faces for permitting the insertion of the trunnions into the reduced upper ends of the slots 3. The lower end of each of these slots is circular in form for forming a bearing for the adjacent trunnion, one of theside walls of the slot being substantially coincident with the inner wall of the circular portion of the slot, and the upper end of the other wall of said slot usually extends inwardly beyond the outer wall of the bearing 4:. The cut-out or flattened portion 8 of each of the trunnions 6 is preferably disposed in a plane at an angle with the end walls I), and when it is desired to insert the trunnions into the slots 3 the rocking frame B is tilted in such position thatthe flattened surface 8 is. substantially coincident with the inner Wall of said slot. The rocking frame B is then lowered until the trunnions dare engaged with the bearings 4c, whereupon. the frame 13 is rocked to its upright position and is securely held from displacement by the overlapping portion of the outer walls of the slot. In like manner when desired to remove the supporting frame said frame is rocked on the trunnion 6 until the face Sis substantially parallel with the inner wall of the slot, whereupon the rocking support may be readily moved upwardly out of the bearing 4.

The gears O are supported between the upper and lower walls I), and the end walls I) are provided with suitable hubs 10, having reduced portions 11 journaled in the bearings 5, or said hub may consist of a hollow tube and the reduced portions 11 may consist of a shaft or spindle having its opposite ends riveted or otherwise secured to the upper and lower walls I). In this event the gears 0 would be journaled upon said shafts or spindles. These gears C may be of any desired size and are each provided with an angular bracket 12 for receiving the oar-sections c and 0'. These brackets are generally arranged one in advance of the other lengthwise of the boat or rail 01 at one side of the axes of their respective gears 0 when the oar-sections are parallel with each other. As seen in the drawings, these brackets 12' are arranged transversely across the upper faces of their respective gears in advance of their axes and form chords of their respective gears, or, in other words, are arranged substantially tangential with relation to the axes of said gears and at an angle with their radii.

The adjacent ends of the oar-sections c and c extend transversely across the upper face of the gears C and are secured to their respective brackets 12 by suitable fastening means, as screws or bolts 13, said bolts or screws being passed through apertures formed in-the brackets and the adjacent ends of the oar-sections, which apertures are arranged at substantially right angles to each other for permitting the insertion of thevertical and horizontal bolts or screws. The oar-section 0 preferably forms the hand-engaging portion of the car. The oar-section 0 extends outwardly from its bracket 12, is adapted to dip into the water, and usually consists of a single piece of suitable material, as wood, formed with a lengthwise slot 14:, extending inwardly from its outer end face, and a flat piece E of suitable material, such as sheet metal, which is inserted in said slot, is formed of greater width than the adjacent portion of the oarsection a and is secured in position by suitable rivets or other fastening means 15.

It is evident from the foregoing description that the operator is. always facing the direction of movement of the boat and that when the oars are not in use it is simply necessary to move the hand-engaging section of the oar rearwardly to the limit of its movement, thereby folding the water-engaging oar-section rearwardly at the outer side of the oarsection 0 and substantially parallel therewith, whereupon the rocking support B may be rocked inwardly and the combined weight of the oars and gears secured thereto, and also the weight of the upper portion of the supporting-frame tends to hold the rocking frame and parts carried thereby within the boat. When it is desired to remove the rocking support and the gears and oar-sections mounted thereon, it is only necessary to register the flattened portions of the trunnions with the inner side walls of the slots and then to lift the whole device bodily from said slots and deposit the same in the boat-house or other secure place, if desired.

The operation of my invention will now be readily understood upon reference to the foregoing description and the accompanying drawings, and it will be noted that the same change may be made in the detail construction and arrangement of the component parts of the device seen in the drawings without departing from the spirit of this invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A propelling mechanism for boats comprising a support, intermeshing gears journaled on the support and provided with angular brackets disposed at the same side of their respective axes when the brackets are in their operative 'position, and oar-sections having their adjacent ends secured to said brackets.

2. A propelling mechanism for boats comprising a rocking support, and two gear-connected oar-sections journaled on the support and arranged at the same side of their respective axes, when the oars are extended so as to fold on opposite sides of their axes.

3. A propelling mechanism for boats comprising a rocking support consisting of an elongated open frame having bearings arranged one in advance of the other, and gearconnected oar-sections journaled in said bearings and adapted to fold parallel with a line drawn through said bearings.

4. A propelling mechanism for boats comprising open-sided bearings secured to the side rail of the boat one in advance of the other, a rocking support removably mounted in the bearings and having upper and lower walls, gearsjournaled on the support between said walls one in advance of the otherlengthwise of the boat, and oar-sections secured to the gears at the same sides of their pivots when the oars are extended.

5. The combination with the side rail of a boat, a base-plate secured to the rail and provided with upwardly-projecting earshaving slots extending downwardly from their upper end faces, said slots being enlarged at their lower ends, and an open frame having end walls provided with trunnions movable into and out of said slots and provided with flattened portions, intermeshing gears journaled in the frame, and oar-sections secured to the gears at the same side of their axes when the oars are extended so as to fold on opposite sides of their axes, for the purpose specified.

6. The combination with the side rail of a boat, a base-plate secured to the rail and provided with upwardly-projecting ears having port one in advance of the other for the purslots extending downwardly from their uppose set forth. IO per end faces, said slots being enlarged at In witness whereof I have hereunto setmy t their lower ends, and a rocking support havhand this 15th day of December, 1900.

5 ing trunnions movable into and out of said DOURA G. PUTNAM.

slots'and provided with flattened portions for l Witnesses: the purpose specified, and gear-connected MILDRED M. NOTT, oar-sections journaled on the rocking sup- 1 H. E. CHASE. 

